This past weekend as I traipsed through the Liberty Tree Mall after watching a movie, my friends and I passed the Pet Express store. At that point it was 9:30 at night and I did not like what we came across. Behind a grated barrier and layers of glass, 25 adorable puppies were staring at us. These poor young animals were not only going to be left alone in the dark until morning, but they were contained in glass enclosures so small that I’ve seen fish tanks bigger! I’ve been in this store before but something about the puppies’ soft gazes in the dark was particularly upsetting to me. So, I decided to do some research into the business to see if I could find anything interesting about their ethics and their treatment of the dogs.
The first questionable piece of information that I found was actually directly from the Pet Express website itself. Right on their website, the company advertises many different types of warranties that they offer for their dogs: things like “Accident and Injury Coverage” and their “Three Year Hereditary Warranty”. From this language you’d think the website was in the business of selling electronics and not live creatures! I was particularly concerned about the Accident Coverage because what they are they implying? That if you “accidentally” break your dog that they will have you covered and just grab you a new one?
Another paragraph on that same page was clearly written with the intent to portray the business in a good light and show that they care about their puppies, but I think it came out wrong. It clearly states, “Please rest at ease, our products lie on shelves not in cages.” Now, it’s hard to tell whether or not the product they are referring to is puppies, but I’m fairly sure it is because the surrounding statements were talking about their supposedly good treatment of them. This therefore makes this statement completely absurd. First of all, the dogs are in cages and on shelves, so not only does this not put me at ease but it’s simply not true! And secondly, anyone who refers to dogs as “product” needs to consider that these are living, breathing, organisms and not a manufactured object.
I also found an interesting Facebook coalition called “Boycott Pet Express” which, as its name suggests, is trying to shed light on the shortcomings of these stores. They claim that they have traced the paths of puppies from so called “USDA Licensed Breeders” to Pet Express. And while the licensed breeders may sound like legitimate and humane sources of dogs, they treat the dogs as inhumanely as do puppy mills. Therefore, Pet Express and companies like it are able to distance themselves from the label of using puppy mills all the while really getting their pets from locations just like them.
So, if there is anything you have learned from this article, I hope it’s that you must choose not to support vile businesses such as Pet Express that mistreat dogs before taking advantage of their adorableness to make money. Only you, the consumers, can help break this vicious cycle and save a dog from enduring the hardship of being locked up and gawked at.